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This policy brief by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) provides a detailed analysis and commentary on the Revised Zero Draft of the international plastics treaty. It evaluates various options for the treaty's structure and obligations, advocating for legally binding mandates ('shall' instead of 'should'), a full life-cycle approach to plastic pollution, and the inclusion of human rights and health dimensions. CIEL emphasizes the necessity of controlling primary plastic polymer production and eliminating hazardous chemicals to achieve the treaty's objective of ending plastic pollution.

The Electrical Utilities Criteria, published by the Climate Bonds Initiative in March 2024, provide a framework for certifying electrical utilities and related debt instruments. The criteria are aligned with a 1.5-degree science-based decarbonisation pathway to net zero by 2050, focusing on reducing emission intensity and phasing out fossil fuel generation.

The Electrical Utilities Criteria (March 2024) by the Climate Bonds Initiative establish a technical framework for certifying electrical utilities and their debt instruments. To achieve certification, entities must align their emission intensity with a transition pathway targeting net-zero by 2040, commit to no fossil fuel expansion after January 1, 2023, and phase out fossil fuel trading by 2030-2040. The criteria set strict thresholds for hydrogen carbon intensity, biomass emissions, and CCS capture rates (90%), while requiring methane leakage controls for gas plants and comprehensive climate adaptation and resilience risk assessments.

The 'Electrical Utility Criteria' (March 2024) by the Climate Bonds Initiative provides a framework for certifying electrical utilities, sustainability-linked debt (SLD), and use-of-proceeds (UoP) bonds. It establishes a transition pathway for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity, aiming for net-zero by 2040 to align with a 1.5C goal. The criteria set specific thresholds for existing and new power generation capacities, including strict limits on non-combustion emissions for low-carbon sources and a phase-out schedule for unabated fossil fuel plants.

This report by the Climate Bonds Initiative analyzes the sustainability-linked bond (SLB) market up to November 2023, identifying a high prevalence of low-quality deals characterized by a lack of ambition, poor disclosure, and weak underlying transition plans. The report provides a quantitative profile of the market, assesses KPI performance and transition plan quality among top issuers, and offers a best-practice checklist to improve market credibility and scale.

The 2023 Report on the WHO-Civil Society Working Group to Advance Action on Climate and Health outlines the collaboration between the World Health Organization (WHO) and health civil society to integrate health into climate decision-making. The report highlights the achievements of 2023, centered largely around COP28, while noting significant gaps in funding and action for health-based adaptation in low- and middle-income countries.

This policy brief by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-Rio) analyzes the regulatory and governance challenges of legal deforestation in Brazil, with a specific focus on the Matopiba region. It examines the issuance of Vegetation Suppression Authorizations (ASV) and the effectiveness of the National System for the Control of the Origin of Forest Products (Sinaflor), concluding that current tools are insufficient for monitoring and controlling legal deforestation.

This report analyzes the financial and regulatory landscape for green buildings in Indonesia, identifying significant barriers to scaling investment. It highlights a gap between national regulations and city-level implementation, noting that residential buildings—the largest energy consumers—are not mandated to follow green standards. Through a deep dive into Semarang, the report demonstrates that combining building material retrofits with high-efficiency cooling systems can reduce energy use by 32% to 44%, though meeting these mandates requires substantial investment.

This report by CPI/PUC-Rio analyzes the barriers to large-scale forest restoration in Brazil, highlighting the need for a regulatory shift from property-scale to landscape-scale management. It identifies three critical requirements: the flexibility to use multiple restoration modalities (from natural regeneration to agroforestry), the integration of public and private lands despite complex tenure issues (especially in the Amazon), and the synergy between mandatory legal obligations and voluntary restoration. The document also notes a conflict between the Forest Code and environmental licensing rules that hinders native silviculture.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-Rio) analyzes the regulatory and institutional framework for large-scale forest and vegetation restoration in Brazil. It argues that current public policies are designed for individual rural properties rather than landscape-scale initiatives and identifies three essential factors—diversifying restoration typologies, bridging public and private land barriers, and integrating mandatory and voluntary restoration—to enable the scaling of restoration, particularly driven by carbon markets.

This briefing by Global Energy Monitor analyzes China's steel industry, focusing on the transition from emissions-intensive blast furnace-basic oxygen furnace (BF-BOF) production to lower-emissions electric arc furnace (EAF) technology. It evaluates the feasibility of China's 15% EAF production target for 2025 and the potential for a more ambitious 20% target, while identifying obstacles such as scrap distribution and energy stability.

The Europe Gas Tracker Report 2024 by Global Energy Monitor analyzes the ongoing expansion of gas infrastructure in Europe. Despite a decrease in gas demand and a shift toward renewables, the region continues to plan and build LNG terminals and pipelines, which the report argues creates significant financial risk, environmental damage, and infrastructure overcapacity.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) has released its Strategy Summary & Implementation Plan for 2023–2027, which outlines a framework to achieve systemic social and economic change. The strategy focuses on producing critical knowledge, shifting economic discourse, and supporting collective power to advance economic justice in South Africa and across the African continent, with a specific emphasis on feminist and intersectional analytical lenses.

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines "bright spots"—effective examples of policy and planning change—to scale natural infrastructure for water services in Canada. It analyzes three distinct models: the City of Nelson's use of local bylaws, the Halifax Regional Municipality's integrated multi-level planning, and EPCOR's hybrid approach combining natural and grey infrastructure for flood mitigation in Edmonton.

The March 2024 Peace & Security Council Report examines the transition of the African Union's Peace and Security Council (PSC) membership, the critical security situation in Abyei, the operational challenges of the African Standby Force (ASF), ongoing AU institutional reforms, and the response of ECOWAS to unconstitutional changes of government in West Africa.

The Biocultural Community Protocol (PCB) of Niafrang, Senegal, is a community-led guide designed to protect the village's natural resources, traditional knowledge, and genetic heritage. It establishes governance principles for the sustainable use of biodiversity and serves as a tool for advocacy against zircon mining and land grabbing, while harmonizing customary laws with national and international legal frameworks.

This report, produced by the Civil Society Working Group on State Capture (CSWG), provides a collective reflection on the findings and recommendations of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture (the Zondo Commission). It evaluates the Commission's successes and failures, critiques the South African executive's response to the findings, and proposes specific legislative and institutional reforms to prevent future state capture and ensure accountability for corrupt actors.

RMI proposes four priority initiatives for state DOTs to reduce the embodied carbon of concrete via the FHWA LCTM program: integrating Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) into procurement, adjusting material specifications to increase SCM usage and blended cements, implementing Performance Engineered Mixture (PEM) demonstration projects, and validating emerging near-zero or zero-emissions concrete technologies.

This executive summary outlines a market assessment and roadmap for the electrification of healthcare facilities (HFs) in Madagascar, specifically focusing on Basic Health Centres (CSBs) and District Referral Hospitals (CHRDs). The report identifies significant gaps in electricity access, particularly for CSBs, and proposes a multi-phase integrated programme from 2024 to 2032 to achieve universal and sustainable energy access for these facilities.

This report provides a market assessment and strategic roadmap for the electrification of healthcare facilities (HFs) in Madagascar, specifically focusing on Basic Health Centres (CSBs) and District Reference Hospitals (CHRDs). It identifies a significant energy gap, where 75% of CSBs lack electricity, and proposes an integrated, bottom-up approach to improve health services through sustainable energy solutions, estimated to require USD 83 million over ten years.